Medicare Monday: Tampering with the Successful Structure of Part D

First, in case you missed it, last week CMS released new Part D utilization and cost data for 2013. While we support efforts to increase transparency, this data release is very misleading and lacks appropriate context. Check out our 5 things to know here.

As you know, Medicare Part D is a successful government program coming in well under initial budget projections ($349 billion less than initial 10-year projections, to be exact) and helping to keep costs low for both taxpayers and beneficiaries. Competition and beneficiary choice – there are more than 1000 plans available nationwide in 2015 – lead to access and affordability for our nations seniors and people living with disabilities.

Additionally, improved medication adherence due to Part D has helped millions of Medicare beneficiaries treat chronic health conditions and avoid costlier hospitalizations and complications down the road. We’ve talked about diabetes, Parkinson’s disease, congestive heart failure and more in recent weeks.

Despite this success, there are some who would tamper with the structure of this successful program and put these benefits at risk. In the coming weeks, we’ll explore some of these misguided proposals more in depth to understand why undermining the competitive structure of Part D could cause so much harm to those who are served by the program. Continue to check back with the Catalyst for more Medicare Monday posts or subscribe to email updates here.

Allyson Funk Ally is a former senior director of public affairs at PhRMA focused on advocacy issues for the biopharmaceutical industry. Her expertise includes Medicare, Medicaid, 340B, health reform and more. Prior to PhRMA, her experience included leading health communications for a large membership organization, supporting public affairs clients and working for the governor of Louisiana.